LINK TO PDF NEWSLETTER DOWNLOAD
February 2025
White-winged Crossbill
· Individual White-winged crossbills can eat up to 3,000 conifer seeds each day
· Adult White-winged crossbills molt their feathers once a year, usually in the autumn. The red feathers of the male (female is green) have unpigmented barbules that mask the red and make the bird appear pink at first in the fall. As these barbules wear off the bright red shows through, making the spring and summer male brilliantly coloured
· White-winged crossbills with lower mandibles crossing to the right are approximately three times more common than those with lower mandibles to the left
· White-winged crossbills are opportunistic breeders; they can start nesting at any point in the year when food is sufficient for the female to form eggs and raise young. The species has been recorded breeding in all 12 months
· In Europe, the White-winged crossbill is known as the “Two-barred” crossbill. This Old World form is larger than New World birds, with larger bills, less black in the plumage, different calls. The two forms are currently considered the same species, but may be distinctive.
Red Crossbill
· One of the great puzzles of bird classification is where to draw the line between species. Red crossbills of the many “types” now described are especially puzzling because these birds do not conform well to the usual concepts of “species” and “subspecies.” Unlike many subspecies, the different types of Red crossbills wander widely, sometimes joining up with other crossbill types. Even so, interbreeding between types appears to be very limited, suggesting that the types may on their way to becoming full species
· The Red crossbill is so dependent upon conifer seeds it even feeds them to its young. Consequently, it can breed anytime it finds a sufficiently large cone crop, even in the depths of winter
· A crossbill’s odd bill shape helps it get into tightly closed cones. A bird’s biting muscles are stronger than the muscles used to open the bill, so the Red crossbill places the tips of its slightly open bill under a cone scale and bites down. The crossed tips of the bill push the scale up, exposing the seed inside (SEE LINK TO WATCH CORNELL UNIVERSITY VIDEO) https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1649359052146633
PLEASE TAKE NOTE OF THESE TEMPORARY CHANGES IN 2025
THERE WILL BE NO MOBILE SEED TRUCK ON LOCATION AS FOLLOWS:
WILDWOOD LOCATION:
TUESDAY FEBRUARY 11 AND TUESDAY FEBRUARY 18
CROWFOOT LOCATION:
WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 12 AND WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 19
NO DELIVERIES THURSDAY FEBRUARY 13 AND THURSDAY FEBRUARY 20
We apologize for any inconvenience!
Our Spring 2025 Speaker Series starts in April! We have put together some exciting guest speakers with all new lectures. For this year’s Spring Speaker Series we are offering an early bird special! Purchase your tickets in February and save $5.00!
Ticket Price: $15.00 + GST
CITY NATURE CHALLENGE 2025
Matt Wallace is the organizer and founder of the Calgary City Nature Challenge (CNC). April 25-28, 2025 marks the 7th annual event for our city, but what’s it all about? This presentation will tell the story of how the CNC has been a catalyst for the growth of citizen science in Calgary and dive into what we have learned about our urban biodiversity and how you can help to protect it by sharing your observations.
Ticket Price: $15.00 + GST
Purple Martins 101
Please join The Wild Bird Store and local Calgary purple martin landlord Andrew Barnes shares with us everything you need to know about purple martins and how to become a purple martin landlord.
“The Wildlife Experience of Tanzania”. Chris Fisher
Join Chris Fisher for a mesmerizing photo celebration of one of the world’s greatest natural regions. Tanzania features several of the most critical national parks in including Tarangire, Ngorongoro Crater and Seregenti that are not only exceptionally biodiverse, but also bucket-list draws for ecotourism. Chris has guided multiple photo tours to Tanzania and will introduce you to the fabulous wildlife including some of our most cherished birds and mammals.
Ticket Price: $20.00 + GST
Chris Fisher (MSc, PBiol) is perhaps best known as the author of a series books including “Birds of Alberta” – one of the most successful made-in-Alberta books in our province’s publishing history. He is regarded as one of our leading voice for all things Nature and is a frequent contributor in traditional and social media on wildlife and conservation stories. He has written and hosted documentary and TV series, produces the “Birds of Alberta” podcast, and lead wildlife tours throughout the world. Chris is sought-after as a sub-consultant for Environmental work on sensitive species surveys, assessments, regulatory and mitigation needs for industrial development projects in Alberta and has been speaking to with Albertans for decades about our wildlife.
Exploring Alberta’s Parks and Reserves—the Scenic Geology of Alberta
Allow Dale Leckie to help you explore Alberta’s most scenic sites. Dale tells the intriguing story of Alberta’s landscape evolution from Waterton Lakes National Park, to Dinosaur Provincial Park, into the Prairies, and across the North. With trips to Edmonton, Calgary, Crowsnest Pass, and Elk Island National Park, he takes you to explore volcanoes and glaciations long past.
Dale also delves into the relationship between wildlife and landscape which is exemplified in the lives of Golden eagles over the Rockies, American pika over eroding mountains, the burrowing owls on glaciated plains, and greater short-horned lizards surviving in badlands and a vast rain shadow.
Using eye-catching illustrations and photographs, Dale blends storytelling with science, incorporating natural landscape beauty with art and history.
Ticket Price: $20.00 + GST
Dale Leckie, Ph.D., P.Geol. writes best-selling books on the geology and landscapes of Alberta. The Scenic Geology of Alberta: A Roadside Touring and Hiking Guide (2021) encourages people to get out and explore the natural beauty of the province. His most recent book “Wildlife, Landscapes, and Geology: An Alberta and Saskatchewan Touring Guide” (2024) explores relationships between wildlife and geology by getting people out to explore and appreciate nature.
Help Your Garden Grow with Mason Bees
The Wild Bird Store is now offering Mason bee cocoons for sale. We suggest you order your cocoons now to avoid disappointment. Orders will be accepted from February 1 to February 28, 2025 ONLY
Please visit the link below to purchase your cocoons.
Price for a box of 10 is $21.99 and includes +GST and fees.
If this is your first time ordering, we recommend you order 3 to 5 boxes.
Creating a Mason Bee Habitat Seminars
Kris will be presenting in store seminars on Mason bees coming up in the month of April. Watch for the announcement in the March 2025 newsletter. Space will be limited.
All participants on any bird walk must have purchased a ticket through our website – www.wildbirdstore.ca and present the ticket to Jim prior to the bird walk. The weather plays a big part in bird walks and Jim reminds participants to dress anticipating weather changes and to carry water to keep hydrated.
SNOWY OWL PROWL—2nd DAY TRIP February 8, 2025
9:00am. You will meet in the parking lot and the back of The Wild Bird Store, where you can decide to follow Jim or carpool with other participants. This is a full day trip, so please remember to bring refreshments, snacks, lunch and optics.
Ticket price: $7.00 +GST +fees
GRIFFITH WOODS PARK (Discovery Ridge), Saturday February 22, 2025
9:00am meet at Discovery Ridge S.W.
Ticket price: $7.00 (includes GST + fees)
CARBURN PARK, Saturday March 8, 2025
9:00am meet at Carburn Park
Ticket price: $7.00 (includes GST + fees)
INGLEWOOD BIRD SANCTUARY, Saturday March 22, 2025
9:00am meet in parking lot at Inglewood Sanctuary
Ticket price: $7.00 (includes GST + fees)
HULL’S WOOD IN FISH CREEK PARK, Saturday April 5, 2025
9:00am meet in parking lot Bow Bottom Trail S.E.
Ticket price: $7.00 (includes GST + fees)
BURNSMEAD IN FISH CREEK PARK, Saturday April 19, 2025
9:00am meet at 153rd Avenue Parking Lot
Ticket price: $7.00 (includes GST + fees)
We offer a discount if you return your 20 LB or 40 LB seed bags so that we can re-use them (sorry—not the Mother Nature bags which we cannot re-use), suet ball containers, or if you bring your own container or bag to fill . This discount is in addition to any other discount offered.
Annual Seasonal Counts
The Spring Counts run each year from March 1 to April 22
The Fall Counts run from September 20 to November 15
2025 Spring Migration Count At Mt. Lorette Mar 6 – April 22
Since 1992, Rocky Mountain Eagle Research Foundation (RMERF) volunteers have performed annual raptor migration counts at the same site location in the Kananaskis Country, Alberta, spring and fall; significantly providing data to the understanding of and amazement in watching Golden Eagles.
Mt. Lorette Observations
The main observation site is the Hay Meadow, Mt. Lorette Site. The site is located in Kananaskis on the bank of the Kananaskis River. It has a view of the open valley. which allows excellent (though rather distant) viewing of the Fisher Range to the east. The bulk of the Golden Eagles and other raptors use this ridge as part of their preferred migration route.
Question:
From which reptiles did birds evolve?
Response:
It is a favourite question on ornithology exams —-what is the name of the fossil that constitutes the so-called “missing link” between reptiles and birds? The answer is—-Archaeopteryx.
Arch-what, you may ask? The largely intact fossil demonstrating a clear mix of reptilian and avian features was found in 1861 just a few years after Charles Darwin wrote his famous book, On the Origin of Species. It added a lot of weight to his now widely accepted theory stating that one species could evolve into another. Since then, ten more Archaeopteryx fossils, no two alike and all of them crow-sized, have been found, all in a small area north of Munich in Germany. But in the summer of 2010, a twelfth one had been discovered, and in 2018 its formal description has been published, creating quite a buzz among evolutionary scientists. Why? Because this one represents a largely intact skeleton lying on its left side and it presents an opportunity to debate whether Archaeopteryx could actually fly. Examining the creature’s wing architecture using state-of-the-art scanning technology and comparing it to the extinct flying reptiles known as pterosaurs, scientists have concluded that it indeed could fly. Not like a diving peregrine falcon or a soaring albatross, but more like the quick bursts over short distances seen in pheasants, grouse and peacocks. It was originally thought that best flight Archaeopteryx could achieve was to glide from tree to tree like a flying squirrel. But this fossilized skeleton shows adaptations allowing active flight, albeit unique, which could have allowed it to escape predators and fly among islands. One scientist likened it to the stroke of a butterfly swimmer.
David M. Bird, Ph.D., Emeritus Professor of Wildlife Biology, McGill University www.askprofessorbird.com
David M. Bird is Emeritus Professor of Wildlife Biology and the former Director of the Avian Science and Conservation Centre at McGill University. As a past-president of the Society of Canadian Ornithologists, a former board member with Birds Canada, a Fellow of both the American Ornithological Society and the International Ornithological Union, he has received several awards for his conservation and public education efforts. Dr. Bird is a regular columnist on birds for Bird Watcher’s Digest and Canadian Wildlife magazines and is the author of several books and over 200 peer-reviewed scientific publications. He is the consultant editor for multiple editions of DK Canada’s Birds of Canada, Birds of Eastern Canada, Birds of Western Canada, and Pocket Birds of Canada. To know more about him, visit www.askprofessorbird.com or email david.bird@mcgill.ca.
The name comes from the Ancient Greek word “peleken”, which is itself derived from the word “pelekys” meaning “axe.” In classical times, the word was applied to both the pelican and the woodpecker.
Global Bird Count in February
Join the world in connecting to birds February 14–17, 2025. Watch the video to learn more about the count.
Spend time in your favorite places watching birds—then tell us about them! In as little as 15 minutes notice the birds around you. Identify them, count them, and submit your counts to help scientists better understand and protect birds around the world. If you already use eBird or Merlin, your submissions over the 4 days count toward GBBC
Connect to Birds, to Nature, and with Each Other
Birds are everywhere, all the time, doing fascinating things. Join us, February 14–17, 2025, when the world comes together for the love of birds.
To view video or for more information, visit: cornell lab of ornithology.com
City Nature Challenge
Cities around the world collaborate to share observations of nature in the 2025 City Nature Challenge.
Started in 2016 as a competition between Los Angeles and San Francisco, the City Nature Challenge (CNC) has grown into an international event, motivating people around the world to find and document wildlife in their own cities. Run by Community Science teams at the California Academy of Sciences and the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County (NHM), is an annual four-day global bioblitz at the end of April, where cities are in a collaboration-meets-friendly-competition to see what can be accomplished when we all work toward a common goal.
The 2025 CNC takes place in 2 parts: #1 April 25—28, 2025 Taking pictures of wild plants and animals
#2 April 29—May 4, 2025 Identifying what was found. Results will be announced on Monday, May 5, 2025
2025 Wings Over the Rockies Nature Festival May 5—11, 2025
2025 Theme—Our Place in Nature
Our 28th annual festival is located in the beautiful upper Columbia River Valley centered around the mountain town of Invermere, British Columbia. Our Events Calendar will be viewable online starting in late March 2025.
Wildwood Community Centre (4411 Spruce Drive SW): Every Tuesday 3:00pm to 5:30pm
PLEASE NOTE: Mobile Seed Truck will not be at this location Tuesday February 11, 2025 and Tuesday February 18, 2025
Crowfoot Arena (corner of John Laurie & Nosehill Drive NW: Every Wednesday 2:00pm to 5:30pm
PLEASE NOTE: Mobile Seed Truck will not be at this location Wednesday February 12, 2025 and Wednesday February 19, 2025
Please place orders by 12:00 noon the day before the truck is on location
Text us @ (403)701-4571 OR email us at orders@wildbirdstore.ca
Earn and redeem customer loyalty points on the Mobile Seed Truck
DELIVERY: Deliveries will still be made on Thursdays ONLY. Please phone the store at (403) 640-2632 any day prior to 12:00 noon on the Wednesday before your delivery; place and pay for your delivery. Please phone with your order as early as possible to avoid disappointment. If you have any special instructions please do not forget to inform us when you place your order.
PLEASE NOTE: There will be NO deliveries
Thursday February 13, 2025 and
Thursday February 20, 2025
THE DELIVERY CHARGE WILL BE $10
MINIMUM ORDER FOR DELIVERY $25.
Do you need help attracting birds to your backyard?
Do you want advise on designing a backyard habitat for your feathered/winged friends?
Do you have a problem in your backyard we can help solve?
The Wild Bird Store in partnership with Andrew Barnes, now providing at home wild bird consulting service.
Specializing in helping you and your property become Wild Bird friendly for maximum results.
Services offered will include:
Bird feeder(s) recommendations for species focus and seed types
· Type(s) of seed and for which species it will be best suited
· Preferred location for maximum results
· Bird feeder accessories
· Hummingbird feeders and accessories
Nesting
· Nest box selection for native species—including all cavity nesting and platform species for Alberta
· Preferred location for nest boxes
· Maintenance tips
· Advice on how to deter invasive species (House sparrows and European starlings)
Watering needs
· Bird baths
· Heaters and heated baths
· Accessories including drippers and bubblers
· Location dos and don’ts
· Maintenance tips
Bat Houses/Chambers
· Location requirements
· Housing styles—including single vs multiple chambers
After each visit all discussion points and recommendations will be provided along with a 10% OFF coupon to be used at the Wild Bird Store on your next purchase.
PLEASE NOTE: 10% coupon is only valid for a one-time purchase and must be presented at time of purchase. In-store ONLY. ( All Discount restrictions apply)
For further information, pricing and scheduling, please contact
Andrew Barnes cell # (403) 923-8121 (call or text)
Email: birdsbeesyyc@gmail.com
Have you checked out the Merlin app? Would you like a demonstration on how they will help you to identify birds? Stop by The Wild Bird Store during regular business hours and staff will be happy to show you how the app will enable you to identify birds in various ways.
Identify Bird Songs and Calls
Identify Birds by your Photos
Save Birds to Your Life List
Explore lists of birds near your location
DONATIONS
Located at The Wild Bird Store (near the seed bins). We collect your cash as well as “wishlist” donations and arrange to deliver them to local wildlife organizations including Calgary Wildlife Rehabilitation, Alberta Institute of Conservation and Ellis Bird Farm.
We ask for your support quarterly for each of these organizations.
For December 2024, January, February, 2025 your donations will go to:
Calgary Wildlife
Calgary Wildlife Rehabilitation
Thank you for your support
Options for shopping at the Wild Bird Store
PLEASE NOTE: There will be NO deliveries
Thursday February 13, 2025 and
Thursday February 20, 2025
THE DELIVERY CHARGE WILL BE $10. MINIMUM $25 ORDER FOR DELIVERY.
Store hours are:
10:00am to 5:00pm Tuesday through Saturday
We offer a discount if you return your 20 LB or 40 LB seed bags so that we can re-use them (sorry—not the Mother Nature bags which we cannot re-use), suet ball containers, or if you bring your own container or bag to fill . This discount is in addition to any other discount offered.
Write a Google review on your experience at The Wild Bird Store, and as a thank you, we will give you 100 customer loyalty points ($5.00 value). To get a promo code, kindly email info@wildbirdstore.ca
(one Google review per customer)
Earn 200 customer loyalty points ($10.00 value) by referring a friend, acquaintance or fellow birder.
Please visit the store to get a promo code.
No need for a card, just give your phone number. You earn $1.00 for every $20.00 spent (excludes “sales” items, books & optics) and can be used in-store and on Mobile Seed Truck. As a loyalty member our monthly promotions and in-store “specials” are automatically given at the cash register.
Combining our Seniors 10% discount with the Loyalty Program. (Excludes “sales” items, books & optics).
Discount for membership 10% discount for members of Fish Creek Park, AIWC, Priddis Golf Club, Nature Calgary, Sandy Cross Conservation, Springbank Garden Club and Millarville Horticultural Society. Must present valid membership card at time of purchase.
Discount for Military Members & Veterans 10% discount on
purchases in-store or on Mobile Seed Truck (sorry—excludes “sales”
items, books, optics and consignment items)
Does your Aspects or Squirrel Buster feeder need some replacement parts?
Is the warranty & repair depot for:
Squirrel Buster® Bird Feeders
Aspects® Feeders
Did you know that we can repair/replace parts and make it look like brand new?
5901 3rd Street S.E.,
Calgary, AB T2H 1K3
email: info@wildbirdstore.ca
(403) 640 2632
The Store is open Tuesday through Saturday 10:00am to 5:00pm
We are CLOSED Sundays, Mondays and ALL Statutory holidays for Faith, Family and Friends.
We still offer curbside pickup every day we are open and delivery service on every other Thursday.
FOLLOW US ON:
Facebook @thewildbirdstoreyyc
Twitter @wildbirdstoreyyc
Go to YouTube, type in the search bar “The Wild Bird Store” to watch our videos and to help us become more visible . Be sure to click on “Subscribe” before you leave the page.
